When The Morning Benders announced their change-of-identity —becoming born again as Pop Etc— they did so not just with a press-release, but a mixtape. Having to start, in some ways, all over again, the ex-Benders were big on the generosity, handing over an EP's worth of music that comes loaded with the contents of their forthcoming self-titled Pop Etc LP, due out June 12 on Rough Trade.Chris Chu and crew have taken the name-change as an opportunity to leap into a new sound; switching up the classic Phil Spector/Brian Wilson stylings of Big Echo for a set of songs under the influence of '80s synths, '90s R&B ballads, and '00s chart-pop. Given their last album was verily named after a vocal effect, the presence of autotune shouldn't be too much of a surprise; and indie fans who got down to Vampire Weekend side-project Discovery or Shins spinoff Broken Bells will know what they're getting into.
Of course, what makes this different is that Pop Etc isn't a side-project, but a band evolving. As much as some will find it a whole new endeavor, the change is largely surface-level, and the core of the ol' Benders still holds true. Chu remains a student of both studio and structure; a penman with a fondness for classic pop structures and melodic hooks, with an ear for tiny details dotting recordings. Hearing a whole album's worth of Pop Etc will provide the ultimate judgment, but the promise of this Mixtape —of songs like "Halfway to Heaven" and "Calling Your Bluff"— is hard to deny.
Pop Etc, Mixtape
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